Headrest

ABSTRACT

A headrest of a head protective type including a trim cover assembly having: a head receiving area against which a head of rear-seat occupant is to be struck in a collision case; and an impact absorbing frame disposed within the trim cover assembly. A reinforcing element is provided to an inner surface of the trim cover assembly at a point corresponding to such head receiving area, thereby preventing breakage of the trim cover assembly in the case where the head of rear-seat occupant is struck against that head receiving area.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a headrest for use with an automotive seat, and in particular to a headrest of the type having an impact absorption frame provided at a point against which a head of occupant sitting on a rear seat is to be struck in the case of collision.

2. Description of Prior Art

When a collision occurs for example, a great impact load is applied to a body of automobile, with the result that the automobile is abruptly stopped, which in turn to cause a head of seat occupant on a rear seat to strongly strike against a headrest provided on a front seat, under a forward inertia of that seat occupant.

With such strong head shrike of rear-seat occupant, it is frequently the case that a cover material of the front-seat headrest, against which the occupant's head has been struck, is partially broken or torn off.

There is known a headrest of head protective type having an impact absorption frame provided therein, which is used on a front seat so that the impact absorption frame is to receive a head of rear-seat occupant and absorb an impact given thereto.

However, the above-stated problem, i.e. the breakage of cover material of headrest, frequently occurs in particular for such head protective type of headrest. This is because, when a head of rear-seat occupant is struck against the headrest, a covering material of the headrest is excessively contacted with the impact absorption frame and eventually broken or torn there.

Solution to the foregoing problem is suggested in the Japanese Laid-Open Utility Model Publication No. 6-64548, which teaches a head protective type of headrest wherein an elastic buffer material is wound about an impact absorption frame within a headrest, thereby preventing excessive contact of a covering material of the headrest with the impact absorption frame and insuring to avoid breakage of the covering material.

But, this particular prior art requires the elastic buffer material to be wound about the impact absorption frame, and therefore, it is troublesome and difficult to make such arrangement in a foaming process and other assembly processes, hence resulting in a complicate structure of the headrest.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the above-sated drawbacks, it is a first purpose of the present invention to provide an improved headrest of head protective type of which is simplified in structure.

In order to achieve such purpose, a headrest provided on a front seat in accordance with the present invention is basically comprised of:

a trim cover assembly having an inner surface;

a headrest frame disposed in an inside of the trim cover assembly;

an impact absorption frame fixed to the headrest frame;

a foam padding provided in the inside of the trim cover assembly;

a head receiving area defined in the trim cover assembly at a point against which a head of a rear-seat occupant sitting on a rear seat is to be struck under his or her forward inertia in case of a collision; and

a reinforcing element provided on the inner surface of said trim cover assembly at a point corresponding to said head receiving area.

It is a second purpose of the present invention to precisely position the reinforcing element at a point corresponding to the afore-said head receiving area and positively retain the same there against dislocation.

For that purpose, the reinforcing element may include a hardened material integral with the foam padding formed from a liquid foaming agent, the hardened material being originally formed from a material of a property allowing impregnation of the liquid foaming agent therewith and having been impregnated with the liquid foaming agent and hardened due to curing of the thus-impregnated liquid foaming agent during a foaming process which involves injecting the liquid foaming agent into the inside of trim cover assembly and curing the liquid foaming agent into the foam padding filled in the trim cover assembly.

Other various features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from reading of the description, hereinafter, with reference to the annexed drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of a headrest in accordance with the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line II-II in the FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view taken from the circle X in the FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a diagram for explanatorily showing the state where the headrest is provided on a front seat and a head of rear-seat occupant is to be struck against the headrest;

FIG. 5 is a partly broken sectional view for explanatorily showing a foaming process for forming the headrest;

FIG. 6 is an enlarge view taken from the circle X′ in the FIG. 5; and

FIG. 7 is an enlarged view taken from the circle X in the FIG. 2, which shows a reinforcing element to be fixedly connected by adhesive to a trim cover assembly.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION

Referring to FIGS. 1 to 6, there is illustrated an exemplary preferred mode of headrest, generally designated by (H), in accordance with the present invention.

The headrest (H) per se is of a head protective type adapted to be mounted on a front seat, which has a head receiving area for receiving a head of seat occupant on a rear seat and absorbing an impact to the head in such an emergency case as a collision. Namely, as seen from FIG. 4, the headrest (H) is provided on a seat back (SB) of a front seat (FS) and has a head receiving area (1) defined therein at a point against which a head (Ph) of rear-seat occupant (P) on a rear seat (RS) is to be struck under a forward inertia of that particular occupant, as indicated by the arrow, in the case of a collision.

It is noted that the wording, “forward” or “forwardly”, refers to a side (F) forwardly of the seat arrangement in a automobile cabin as in FIG. 4 as well as of the headrest (H) as in FIG. 1, and that the wording, “backward” or “backwardly”, refers to a side (B) backwardly of the cabin and headrest, as in FIGS. 4 and 1.

As understandable in FIGS. 1 to 3, generically stated, the headrest (H) is basically comprised of: a three-dimensional trim cover assembly (10) having a head receiving area (1) defined therein; a reinforcing element (2) disposed on an inner surface of the trim cover assembly (10) corresponding to such head receiving area (1); a foam padding (3); a headrest frame member (41); a pair of stay members (42) (42) adapted for connection with a top of the front-seat seat back (SB); and an impact absorption frame (43).

The trim cover assembly (10) may be formed in the illustrated three-dimensional shape conforming to a predetermined contour of the headrest (H) by sewing together the following separate cover materials: a first cover material (10A); a pair of second cover materials (10C) (10C); a third cover material (10B); and a fourth cover material (10D).

As far as the illustrative embodiment is concerned, the first cover material (10A) has: an upper area (10A-1) extending over the upper side of the headrest (H); and a backward lateral area (10A-2) extending downwardly from that upper area (10A-1) to a substantially upper half of the backward side (at B) of the headrest (H) (see FIG. 2). Defined in such first cover material (10A) is a head receiving area (1) which expands from a substantially backward half of the afore-said upper area (10A-1) to the afore-said backward lateral area (10A-2), of the first cover material (10A), the headrest receiving area (1) being a particular area against which the rear-seat occupant's head (Ph) is to be struck in a collision case, as noted above.

The headrest frame (41) is disposed in the inside of the trim cover assembly (10) and embedded integrally in the foam padding (3) by a predetermined foaming process to be set forth. The two lateral portions (41B) (41B) of the headrest frame (41) is integrally connected with the respective two stay members (42) (42) extending vertically through the fourth cover material (10D) or the bottom of the hardest (HD) in the downward direction. As shown, the headrest frame (41) extends horizontally in the trim cover assembly (10), such that the forward cross portion (41) thereof is located forwardly distant from the stay members (42), so as to avoid contact of the rear-seat occupant's head (Ph) with the headrest frame (41).

The impact absorption frame (43), formed in a generally inverted-U-shaped configuration, is also disposed in the inside of the trim cover assembly (10) and embedded integrally in the foaming padding (3). The two lateral portions (43B) (43B) of the impact absorption frame (43) is firmly connected with the respective two lateral portions (41B) (41B) of headrest frame (41), as by welding. As shown in FIG. 2, a horizontal portion (43A) of the impact absorption frame (43) is disposed near to the head receiving area (1) defined in the first cover material (10A) of trim cover assembly (10).

In accordance with the present invention, the reinforcing element (2) is formed to have an area substantially equal to the aforementioned head receiving area (1) and is fixedly interposed between the first cover material (10A) and the foam padding (3) at that particular head receiving area (1).

As understandable from FIGS. 5 and 6, the reinforcing element (2) may for example comprise a base material (21) (e.g. a cloth) and a foam wadding (22). In that instance, prior to forming a resultant foamed headrest (H), the reinforcing element (2) has been fixedly connected with the inner surface (10A-i) of the first cover material (10A) of trim cover assembly (10) at the headrest receiving area (1), such that the base material (21) is in a close contact with that inner surface (10A-i), while the foam wadding (22) faces inwardly of the trim cover assembly (10).

In this respect, as can be seen in FIG. 2, the reinforcing element (2) may be fixedly sewn with one backward end portion thereof (2E) with a sewn connection portion (S) of trim cover assembly (10) where the backward end portion (10Ae) of the first cover material (10A) is sewn with the one end portion (10Be) of the second cover material (10B).

Or, alternatively, as understandable from FIG. 7, the base material (21) of the reinforcing element (2) may be fixedly connected by an adhesive (BN) to the inner surface (10A-i) of first cover material (10A).

At this headrest pre-assembly stage, as seen in FIG. 5, the trim cover assembly (10) with the above-described reinforcing element (2) fixedly attached thereto as well as the headrest frame (41) disposed therein are placed in the upper and lower dies (UD) (LD) of known foaming die device. Then, a liquid foaming agent (3′) is injected via a nozzle (N) into the inside of the trim cover assembly (10) and cured into an increased mass of the foam padding (3). During this foaming, it is important to note that the foam wadding (22) is impregnated with the liquid foaming agent (3′) and, therefore, after completion of the foaming, the foam wadding (21) is solidified into a hard wadding layer in the reinforcing element (2) due to the curing of liquid foaming agent (3′), as indicated by (R) in FIG. 3. Accordingly, due to such hardening of the foam wadding (21), the base material (21) juxtaposed therewith is provided with an increased reinforcing effect.

From the thus-formed headrest (H), it is to be appreciated that, in the case of collision, upon the rear-seat occupant's head (Ph) being strongly struck against the head receiving area (1), the backward upper localized region of trim cover assembly (10) corresponding to that head receiving area (1), the reinforcing element (2), a local region of the foam padding (3) corresponding to that reinforcing element (2), and the impact absorption frame (3) cooperate with one another to effectively absorb a great impact caused by the strong strike of the rear-seat occupant's head (Ph).

In particular, it is to be appreciated that the juxtaposition of the reinforcing element (2) with the inner surface (10A-i) of first cover material (10A) insures to prevent breakage of that particular first cover material (10A), thereby effectively avoiding contact of the rear-seat occupant's head (Ph) with the impact absorption frame (43), which thus protects the head (Ph) against injury and damage.

The reinforcing element (2) is not limited to the previously described two-layer lamination structure comprising the base material (21) and foam wadding (22), but may be formed by one unitary material having a great thickness, which includes a cloth material or a natural leather materia, or one unitary sheet of synthetic resin material, for instance.

In this regard, in the case of the reinforcing element (2) comprising the foregoing base material (21) and foam wadding (22), an advantage attainable therefrom is that, during the foaming process stated above, the foam wadding (22) is hardened and integrally adhered with the foam padding (3) due to the impregnation and curing of the liquid foaming agent (3′) in the foam wadding (22), and therefore, the reinforcing element (2) is precisely positioned at a given point corresponding to the head receiving area (1) and positively retained thereat against dislocation, during the foaming process. This results in a far more assured reinforcing effect to the first cover material (10A), thereby insuring to prevent breakage of that particular first cover material (10A).

While having described the present invention as above, it should be understood that the invention is not limited to the illustrated embodiment, but any other modification, replacement, and addition may be applied thereto without departing from the scopes of the appended claims. For example, instead of the above-described foaming process, the foam padding (3) may be formed by a certain foaming process, independently of the headrest frame (41) and trim cover assembly (10), and then, the thus-formed foam padding (3) be provided on the headrest frame and thereafter covered with the trim cover assembly (10). 

1-6. (canceled)
 7. In combination with a rear seat, a headrest of impact absorbing type provided on a front seat disposed forwardly of said rear seat, wherein said headrest has an upper side facing upwardly of said front seat and a lower side facing downwardly of said front seat, said headrest comprising: a trim cover assembly including: a first cover material covering said upper side of said headrest, said first cover material including an inner surface and one end; a second cover material covering said lower side of said headrest, said second cover material including one end; and a sewn connection portion defined backwardly of the trim cover assembly to face said rear seat, wherein at said sewn connection portion, said one end of said first cover material is connected by sewing with said one end of said second cover material; a headrest frame; a thin rod-shaped impact absorption frame fixed to said headrest frame, said impact absorption frame being disposed inside of said trim cover assembly so as to face a side where said rear seat exists and also extending parallel to a width of said headrest; a head receiving area defined in a localized area of said trim cover assembly between said sewn connection portion and a given point in said first cover material, so as to opposingly face said thin rod-shaped impact absorption frame, said head receiving area being an area where a head of a rear-seat occupant sitting on said rear seat is to be struck against said particular head receiving area as well as said thing rod-shaped impact absorption frame, under forward inertia of said rear-seat occupant in case of a collision, a foam padding provided inside of said trim cover assembly; and a reinforcing element which is substantially equal in area to said head receiving area and has one end and another end, said reinforcing element being provided to said inner surface of said first cover material and located corresponding to said head receiving area, such that said one end of said reinforcing element is connected by sewn with said sewn connecting portion, while said another end of the reinforcing element is disposed substantially at said given point in said first cover material. 